Plans for 70 homes at Little Keyford Lane still ‘too car-centric’ say the town coun

FROME Town councillors have commended newly-improved plans by Wainhomes to build 70 houses at Little Keyford Lane, but councillors still say that plans are still “too car centric”.  

Town councillors praised the applicant for making improvements to the plan such as allowing access off The Mount and adding cycle and pedestrian access to Little Keyford, but they felt the plans hadn’t gone far enough. Councillors pointed out that the plans were not as energy efficient and forward thinking as they could be, saying the house designs were outdated, and suggested the plans lacked a sense of community. 

The town council heard from Chris Marsh, a spokesperson from Pegasus Planning Group which is representing Wainhomes, at a meeting of the planning committee on 31st March. 

Chris Marsh said, “One of the key changes in this application is the relocation of vehicle access to The Mount which is in line with the most recent Barratt David Wilson masterplan and this is designed to work with existing and proposed accesses off The Mount, including Dragonfly Close. That, in turn, has moved the access from Little Keyford Lane; that is now to be provided as a pedestrian and cycle link. 

“In terms of design, we heard loud and clear the comments on house types and material detailing, so there has been some significant revisions with the design team in that respect. We’ve also revisited the energy strategy, meaning better building performance and additional renewable energy.” 

Wainhomes originally proposed to build 70 homes on Little Keyford Lane in Frome, opposite Marston Trading Estate. Mendip District Council’s planning board refused the plans in October 2021, prompting the developer to lodge an appeal with the Planning Inspectorate.  

The company has now put forward amended proposals responding to the board’s concerns, and Frome Town Council has commented on these plans. 

Cllr Paul Horton said, “Firstly I have to commend the improvements to the plans; I think the access off The Mount and the cycle access to Little Keyford are definite improvements. However, the plans are still super car-centric and a typical 20th century suburban layout which promotes driving; there’s parking spaces outside everyone’s houses. The proposals for The Mount are an improvement, but they are still car biased. I think part of the problem with The Mount is there is no footway or enough width for a cycle lane, therefore we need to take a lane away from the cars. 

“We don’t feel that comments on the house design have been addressed. From a personal point of view, they’re pastiche, backward-looking house designs. In terms of the layout, there is no focal point for the community and the play area is still at the edge of the development and is not particularly accessible.” 

In response, the Wainhomes representative said, “With regards to car-centricity, I would agree that the highway design is being led by private vehicle usage, it would be a case of fitting appropriate cycling and pedestrian provision around a very rigid framework for manoeuvring vehicles. We also have to meet parking standards, which include visitor parking.” 

Cllr Lizzie Boyle added, “My lament is that we’ve been talking about these sites for a long time and we have talked for much of that time about the need for a comprehensive road layout and connections to the main roads. It has taken all of that time for that to be recognised and for the change in that access point away from Little Keyford Lane to the Mount; it feels like we could have agreed that months ago and moved onto other stuff.” 

Cllr Boyle also raised the point that the heating system in the plans are not sustainable as they are gas boilers and would need to be replaced by heat-pumps in the next ten years at the expense of the householder. 

The town council commended the improvements to the plan, specifically to the access and the cycle ways but their concerns were that the plans are still too car-centric. Councillors also raised concerns about the designs of the houses, a lack of a sense of community, and the play area at the edge of the site not being over looked. Councillors also still had concerns over energy efficiency and the footway and transport plan. 

Chair of the meeting, cllr Steve Tanner summarised, “It’s moved an awful long way since we first saw the plans and that’s really commendable. I think there are just a couple more steps in order to get us fully on side.”